Love Game
by Sweetatoo
Summary: She has a reason to play with love. He has a reason to manipulate love. At the end of the day, everyone's happy and satisfied. Well, not exactly because when you play with a sacred thing like this, the price being paid tends to be a bit above your paycheck.
1. Her Perspective

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

* * *

For her, this was a love game. Nothing more, nothing less.

For someone who had lived as long as she had, love was nothing but meaningless. Maybe because of the Geass she had long ago that made anyone who looked her in the eye fall in love with her right on the spot. Or maybe because all those men whom she truly loved had all passed away with time, leaving her behind. Or perhaps she was a witch who easily got bored. She never stuck with a Geass user long enough; she left when she saw there was no future in their contract. For instance, Mao. Or even if there were a future, they would manage to get themselves killed before fulfilling the contract. With her endless existence where consequences didn't matter, she just wanted to have fun. Specifically, she wanted to have fun with love, a thing deemed sacred by countless people but her. After all, love, like everyone she'd met, would vanish with time. Time would take everything away from her, so she should have fun while it lasted, right?

**000**

"Shut up!" he shouted. Then all of a sudden, he sprang from his seat by the window, leaped at her and pushed her down onto the bed. Hard.

Bright, cold and fathomless golden orbs met equally bright, crazed and hurt violet orbs indifferently.

"Are you going to hit me now, boy?" she said evenly. Her eyes never once wavered and averted from his.

Lelouch gritted his teeth and gripped her shoulders tighter to the point she could feel his nails dig through the fabric and into her skin, but she made no comment.

"I know you probably feel guilty about what happened to her father. But this is war, Lelouch. It's not some game of a child or a chess game. So man up and face reality." Even though C.C. hadn't raised her voice once but her tone was so authoritative and determined and real that it instantly snapped him out of his reverie, enough for him to loosen his hold and realize what he had done.

Well, what truly made him realize what he'd done was this.

Due to his weight on her being lifted, C.C. picked herself up from the bed and sealed his lips with her rosy ones. It only lasted for less than five seconds. She then fell back onto the bed, taking in the bizarre look on the handsome exiled prince's face, and what mirrored in her own golden orbs was nonchalance.

"This is a game, Lelouch," she said, smirking. "If you don't play properly, you'll lose." Then, she cocked her head to one side and raised an eyebrow. "Though I would never expect you to taste like strawberry. Lelouch, what kind of chapstick do you use?"

After the flustered raven-haired teen threw a fuss over her question, along with her action and contradiction, and went (almost sprinted) to the bathroom, C.C. rolled over on the bed, grabbed her Cheese-kun and hugged it close to her chest, letting her chin rest on its fluffy head and closing her eyes.

**000**

"Hey Lelouch."

No answer.

"Lelouch."

Still nothing.

She breathed out a sigh, reached behind her to search for that unused pillow, found it, picked it up and threw it at the dark figure on the ground.

A relatively loud grumble was then heard, and what quickly followed was, "What?"

"How's the futon feel?" she asked in the darkness of his bedroom, in that usual monotone of hers.

He grumbled again and mumbled something, and the sound of the disturbed blankets must have implied that he was turning away from her. Then silence.

"Lelouch."

Not even a breath was audible this time.

"Lelouch vi Britannia."

"Lelouch _Lamperouge_. Don't ever call me by that disgraceful last name again." His tone of voice was harsh. Way too harsh for someone who was half asleep a minute before.

"Well, I have your attention now, don't I?" said C.C. idly as her eyes pierced his back intensely, as if it were merely her beloved pizza on which she could ever lay a hand.

A sigh escaped his lips. "What do you want, witch?" he asked. His voice was partially muffled by the thick blankets he had wrapped around him to keep away the cold and the heat in.

"I want you to come up here."

Due to the shuffling of the blankets and comforter, he must have turned around to face her again. A minute passed, then he surprised her by a light chuckle. "Why now? Isn't it your rule that boys sleep on the floor?"

"It is," she said, slightly annoyed. "But I can't go back to sleep."

"Is that so?"

"I just had a nightmare, boy."

Another minute went by, and all was silent. Then she heard some sounds on the floor. By now, her eyes had already adjusted to the dark so she could spot Lelouch, and see him get up from his futon, make his way to the bed. She scooted back to give him some room.

Lelouch got in neatly under the two layers of blankets, stretched out his left arm, coaxing her to move in, and she did. She put her head on his shoulder and one hand rested on his chest. As for his part, Lelouch wrapped his arm around her protectively while the other hand lay gently atop hers.

"Go to sleep," he whispered into her apple-scented soft and thick lime locks. C.C. snuggled in close and a small, satisfactory smile crossed her face. Now, she could go back to a wonderful dreamland in which only pizza resided. Now, he got to temporarily cure his back pain by sleeping properly on a bed and not the floor.

**000**

"What's that?" C.C. asked as he came into the room carrying a relatively small box with red ribbons wrapped around it and a bow of same color decorated its top.

Lelouch closed the door behind him, and walked toward the bed on which the timeless witch was relaxing.

"Don't you know what day today is?" he asked while sitting down at the edge of the bed. When she stared at him blankly, he sighed. "It's Valentine's Day."

"Oh? Is that from Shirley, then?" she queried tauntingly, already knowing the answer to the question. Out of all of his friends, Shirley was the most infatuated with him, apparently.

"Yes," answered Lelouch as he tore open the wrapping papers and opened the box, revealing a beautiful heart shaped dark chocolate.

He broke it in two. Gave her the other half.

"Happy Valentine's, C.C."

She took the piece, nibbled it and smirked. "Same to you, boy."

**000**

C.C. was lounging on a comfortable couch and munching on a slice of cheese pizza with eyes glued to the TV screen when he walked into the Black Knight's headquarters, still in his Zero's outfit and its mask nested in the crook of his elbow.

He glanced at her once, eyes arrowed at the mess surrounding her, heaved a small yet too familiar sigh, and walked on.

C.C.'s golden orbs followed his every movement and stopped when he did. Lelouch put the mask down on his desk on which papers and pens and pencils and maps strewed about. So much for an organizing trait. He then flopped down onto the swiveling chair, uttering another sigh in the process, and propped his chin on the knuckles of his slightly curled fingers as his eyes moved down to focus on the pile of mess around him. And he called her a messy witch? Please.

She stood up, ambled toward him clad in only her usual white garments, and he was too engaged in his work to notice anything else. And C.C. took that opportunity.

She got behind him as silently as a ghostly cat. Then, reaching out her slender arms, she wrapped them around his neck. He didn't budge. Eyes still on the paper, a report of some sort to be specific, and a pen was moving in his right hand. C.C. leaned down closer to one side of his face and brushed her lips on his ear. The pen was still moving, though slower this time. Next, she kissed his cheek, and the hand became immobile almost immediately. C.C. tightened her hold around his shoulders and bit down gently on his ear, and a smirk danced across her lips when she felt his body tense up under her touch.

A light laugh escaped her before she pushed back and ruffled his soft raven locks. "Just kidding," she said, then walked back to her former spot on the sofa with hands clasped behind her whilst whistling an unfamiliar tune.

For her, this was nothing but a game.

A love game. Nothing more and nothing less.

Until that day.

* * *

A/N: In case any of you are a bit confused about the layout of this chapter, the four short parts are just instances in which C.C. is playing and having fun with love. This chapter is about her point of view, and the next will be about that of Lelouch, and of course the last chapter will be the conclusion.

Thank you for reading and reviews will be very appreciated! Well, until next time :)


	2. His Perspective

For him, this was a love game. Nothing more, nothing less.

For someone who had so much on his mind and whose duty was to rid of the world of evil deeds and bring irreversible happiness to his beloved sister, he could _not_ allow emotions to cloud his judgment. As a matter of fact, he was considered an extreme and dangerous terrorist by the authority who had been controlling Japan, the country in which he and his sister were residing, and the sooner his head was handed on a silver platter to the commanders, the better.

Therefore, any emotion, especially love, would slow him down. However, it was unnecessary to say that he was heartless for he loved his sister dearly, and she was the main reason why he started this whole thing. So Lelouch could be anything considered unholy: manipulative, cunning, criminal, fearful, sinful, wicked, evil, etc. But no, he was not heartless. Not completely. Everything he did, he did it for a reason. Even if it meant playing with people's feelings.

**000**

Lelouch pulled her into a tight embrace, burying both his fingers and face in her shiny orange locks. Her wails and sobs were so heartbreaking that his hold on her tightened unconsciously.

"Shirley," he was saying, "you have to forget. Forget everything."

"How can I!" She was screaming, but her face being pressed lightly into his chest muffled some of its sound. Her hands reached out and hugged his back. "How can I forget everything, Lelouch?"

Lelouch took in a deep breath, then released his hold on her a bit. "Shirley, look at me," he said gently. She tilted her head up.

"You have to erase everything from your mind. Everything," he said.

She was merely staring at him, her eyes glazed and glassy and if he hadn't known better, they looked soulless. Then, without warning, she pushed herself up to plant a soft kiss on his lips. To say he looked puzzled was a complete understatement.

When she let go, she looked at him meekly with tears trimming down her face. "I don't want to forget _everything_," she whispered, and he knew immediately what she was referring to.

"No, Shirley!" He grabbed her arms and shook her gently, much to her surprise. His eyes stern and glued to hers. "You have to. It's… It's for your own good that you forget you have ever known me and about your father's death. I… Lelouch vi Britannia commands you to…"

Her eyes widened as she realized what was happening. "Lelouch, NO!" It was too late.

"Heh, at least you had one last kiss before everything went down," commented C.C. as she and he were sitting on the train to go back home. He didn't say anything as he looked out the window at the moving scenery with chin propped up on his hand. His expression was unreadable.

C.C. followed his gaze and found herself stare at nothing when she said, "Do you love her, Lelouch?"

A minute passed before he answered. "She will only be a hindrance to my plans. I cannot have her destroy what I've built up so far. Her memory would be my downfall if I didn't do something about it."

The green-haired witch turned back to him and a mysterious smirk made its way onto her pretty face. "Ara, what a cold boy." Then, the smirk widened. "Just what you'd expect from the leader of a grand-scale rebellion group."

**000**

The echoing and relatively loud sounds of the helicopter's whirring blades penetrated the invisible curtain of a quiet night.

On the rooftop of a building stood two people. Both seemed to be of the same age, but one was a boy in a military uniform while the other was a girl dressed casually, only that her clothes were stained in blood in some parts.

The helicopter slowly took off and flew away, leaving the couple behind and returning silence to the night.

"Why did you come, Lelouch?" the girl asked, not turning around to face him. She was simply staring across at the opposite building, her back to him.

Lelouch took off his hat and said, "I had to. He was going to cut you into pieces with a chainsaw and stuff you in a suitcase. You're going to be okay with that?"

"Of course not," she said curtly, shuddering slightly at the image. "But I'm immortal, I'll find a way to glue myself back anyhow. What you did was unnecessary. Why exactly _did_ you come, Lelouch?"

He noticed that during her speech, she never once attempted to shift about. Her pose was as rigid as that of a statue.

A sigh escaped his lips as he wearily realized how the witch could be annoyingly persistent sometimes. "Like I said," he repeated slowly as if speaking to a mere child who had just learned how to comprehend words. "I couldn't just stand by and do nothing. After all, you…" He hesitated for a split second, then continued. "You saved Shirley. Consider this a returned favor, witch."

At long last, C.C. made a movement. She half turned her head around so that one of her eyes was looking at him while the other was obscured behind her long bangs. A small, very small and mysterious smile touched the corner of her lips. "Is that so? Are you sure it's not because you were afraid I couldn't withstand the torture and would tell him everything I know about you and Nunnaly and the rebellion?"

Silence greeted her. Her smirk disappeared almost immediately when she turned around to face him properly. "That's very low, Lelouch-" she began.

"Let's make a deal, C.C.," he cut her off as he stepped forward. Reaching out his hand, he said, "This time, the contract is from me to you."

She looked down at his outstretched and awaiting hand, then glanced back up at his handsome face. Both his and her expressions were unreadable under the bright moonlight. "What do you have to offer?"

**000**

There was a knock on the door to Zero's private room.

Lelouch looked up from his report, and was about to say, "Come in" when he remembered he didn't have the mask on. Quickly scrambling about searching for the mask, he finally found it and hastily put it on his head. Clearing his throat, he called, "Come in!"

It was Kallen. Lelouch couldn't help letting out a sigh of relief. That was a close call.

"What is it, Kallen?" he asked.

What she showed him completely took him off guard.

It was a bouquet of flowers, numerous colors intertwining each other, and the fresh, lovely smell of countless kinds of flowers wafted up his nose. Yes, it pierced his mask to go up to his nostrils, that's how strong the aroma was. Then, her other hand reached out and on it lay a box of chocolate.

Lelouch's eyebrows rose so high that they touched his hairline, but he knew she couldn't see it.

"I don't suppose those are for me?" It came out sounding more like a hesitant question than a statement, at which she shook her head.

"Zero, where's C.C.? I've been looking everywhere for her but I couldn't find her, so I thought she must be with you," said Kallen.

This time, one eyebrow went down while the other stayed. "Why would you…" His eyes widened. "Don't tell me…"

Kallen nodded slowly as she glanced down at the presents in her hands. "Yes, these are all for your adviser."

"Oh my." C.C. took in the sight in front of her and breathed in the air. "I didn't know you're a romantic, Lelouch," she commented, smirking.

Lelouch stopped in his reading once again, glanced up at the witch who had come in as quietly as a ghost, then followed her gaze toward the flowers and the box of chocolate next to them. Earlier, he had advised Kallen to put them both on the table in the middle of the room. And when she left, he was still dazed at the thought that C.C. had a secret admirer.

"Not from me," he said simply, nodding at the stuff. "Kallen brought them here and from what she told me, it appears that you have a secret admirer."

"Oh?" prompted C.C. with a raised eyebrow as she leaned on the edge of the table and crossed her arms.

He heaved a sigh and put down his paper. "The guy said he met you in an alley and you almost suffocated him with your kick to his neck. And regardless of how crazy this might sound, he found that attractive in a woman, so he tracked you down, and found that you were our member."

C.C. blinked once. Twice, then thrice before it dawned on her and she let out a laugh. Said laugh was soon subdued to chuckles. She picked up the box of chocolate and casually tore open the wrappers. "I remember him," she said with a smirk on her face. "I randomly ran into him while searching for Mao. He told me to go ask the Black Knights, and I told him that he was being utterly useless." The mysterious smirk widened as she picked up a creamy caramel chocolate and examined it. "What a strange guy, but whatever. Here," she tossed it to Lelouch, who luckily caught it in time before it sailed to the ground.

He didn't eat it right away. Instead, he watched her walk past him with the box rested on the palm of her hand. She then flopped down on the chair opposite his and picked up the paper he'd been reading. As her eyes travelled down its length, her hand reached into the box for another confection.

Lelouch looked back at the untouched flowers, and he actually felt sorry for the guy. "You didn't even touch the flowers, C.C.," he said, turning back to her and walking toward his desk.

She glanced up at him, shrugged nonchalantly and said emotionlessly, "Just throw it away. They're going to die in a few days, anyway. So what you do think of this battle plan?"

He shook his head as he sat down in his chair. _What a heartless witch, _he thought absentmindedly.

**000**

A pair of golden eyes blinked once, then twice before a squeal escaped her lips. "They're lovely!" she exclaimed as her hands brought up to cover the bright smile that was stretching wide on her face.

Lelouch could only stare helplessly at what was unfolding before his eyes, and what was nesting in his arms.

A bouquet of flowers. Again. Their various colors were hurting his eyes so he looked away quickly. Then he remembered something like this had happened long ago, when she was still _herself, _not the clueless girl with a mind of a ten-year-old, who was still beaming at him.

"You never liked these things, C.C.," he said slowly, earning a gasp from her.

"How could I not!" she said, then suddenly remembering her place and she turned timid again. "I-I'm sorry, Master… But they're so beautiful."

A sigh escaped Lelouch's lips as he moved on, past her, toward a vase rested atop a small table in the corner of the room. "I'll put them here. Make sure you water them regularly," he said. A sudden nostalgia and disgust washed over him because he knew the old C.C. would just laugh and wave her hand at that. _This_ C.C., however, nodded in great excitement.

"Who are those from?" she asked innocently, to which he shrugged nonchalantly.

"Who knows?" answered Lelouch carelessly as he put the flowers in the vase with the same amount of care as evident in his voice.

"Did you buy them yourself, Master?"

A light chuckle filled the room. "Like I would."

"I just… I would like very much to thank the person who gave us the flowers. I mean, they're so pretty."

"Don't bother," he said curtly, then turned around after finishing his little decoration. "So, C.C., just stay-"

He was cut off abruptly simply because the other party was no longer there to listen.

When did C.C. go into one of the rooms? He had no clue. But when she came out, she was dressed in a pair of simple jeans and a white T-shirt, and a dark brown jacket was draped over her arm.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked in both complete curiosity and surprise.

A color of light pink dusted her cheeks as she replied shyly. "I just… want to thank that person…"

"I told you don't bother." Without meaning to, he had raised his voice and she shrank back with the volume.

"M-Master…"

Lelouch heaved a heavy sigh as he ruffled his raven locks. He studied her for a moment under narrowed eyes before saying, "C.C., you don't even know who that was."

"I… I can ask Kallen…"

"We're in the middle of a battle. You think she has time for that?"

C.C. quickly shook her head. "It's okay," she answered hastily, earning a raised eyebrow from him. "I will manage on my own. Besides," she bit her lip and twirled a lock around her finger, "I have nothing else better to do, anyway," she said matter-of-factly.

Out of the blue, something skin-crawling seized him, and Lelouch froze, eyes widening as that thing gradually dawned on him.

Even though C.C. had lost all her memories and reverted back to the slave girl she used to be, she still retained that one particularly strong and undying trait. In that slender and cowering body still resided a very annoyingly and irritatingly and painfully persistent witch.

If he didn't play his cards right, she would take off to God knows where. And who knows if she was still immortal? And who knows when she was going to get her memory back? More specifically, what if she still had that Godlike, Geass-granting powers even in this pathetic form and started to give people Geass without knowing the consequences. A bead of sweat trailed down his right temple as one last thought pushed its way to the front of his mind. What if she fell into the hands of the Britannia, and those commanders used the power of God to… to fight fire with fire?

A relatively big smile slowly stretched out on his face as he took a few cautious steps toward her. She inadvertently stepped back, and he stopped before proceeding again, his hands held out in surrender.

"Listen, C.C.," he said softly. The glint in his eyes was evident and the smile widened a bit. "You like flowers, don't you?" He nodded at the vase in the corner, and she meekly titled her head down.

Without warning, Lelouch grasped her tiny hand in his, earning a surprised gasp from her but he ignored it and went on. "Tell you what? I'll buy you flowers everyday, along with the most delicious pizza and chocolate. Do you like that?" His tone of voice was so gentle that for a moment she only gaped at him with those big, deer-like eyes before a smile of her own broke out.

"Yes, Master!" said C.C. cheerfully as she wrapped her other hand over his that was enveloping hers, and squeezed it lightly. "I'd love that." Her head was bobbling with excitement.

_Just like a ten years old, _Lelouch thought idly as he reached up the other hand to push a stray hair back behind her ear. C.C. shuddered ever so slightly under his touch and his smirk never disappeared even when he said, "Just promise me one thing, C.C."

"Anything, Master," she whispered, and he knew he got her.

"Promise me you'll never leave. Never set foot out of this place. Stay with me forever, C.C."

He knew he was sounding like a crazy psycho he once knew and put down himself, but it wasn't like he had a lot of options.

And to his anticipation, the green-haired girl's bright smile only got brighter and wider. "Of course, Master. Anything for you," she said wholeheartedly, squeezing his hand tighter.

Lelouch's smirk quickly mirrored her own.

For him, this was nothing but a game.

A love game. Nothing more and nothing less.

Until that day.

* * *

A/N: This one was way harder than I'd thought, so that's why it took longer than I'd expected... But at last! Here you go! :D One more chapter to go!

Thank you so much for reading and reviewing! Much love!


	3. Our Perspective - RE

Probably a thousand years ago, an old woman had once told her. "Young lady, if I were you, I'd stop playing with these men's feelings. Don't you know that love is a sacred thing? You shouldn't take it for granted." And she had laughed it off.

Young Suzaku glared at him and said through gritted teeth. "Lelouch, stop being so manipulative! Is that a Britannian trait or something?" And he had huffed at that.

Neither one had taken the hint seriously.

Neither one could have known that karma could be a bitch.

**000**

"Good-bye, Lelouch," said Kallen as she took a step back. As if her tone of voice wasn't sad enough, her deep blue eyes had to be equally grieving when she looked at him, when she broke off their kiss. Lelouch wished he could look anywhere but into those mournful blue orbs but he simply couldn't.

She waited for a moment and he fancied that maybe she was hoping he'd change his mind, his strategies and undo what he'd done. It was too late to turn back now, though.

Then, she gave him another last dejecting look before turning around and walking up the marble staircase. The _clink clink_ sounds of her heels echoed off the empty white walls.

"Good-bye, Kallen," he murmured under his breath, knowing full well she was already out of earshot.

Back at the headquarters, C.C. stood up from her position in the commanding chair and paced the room. A slight frown was creasing her forehead. Then she stopped and glanced up at the big screen again – the one that contained no visuals whatsoever, only audios. Taking a deep breath, she returned to her former spot and flopped down, tapping her slender fingers impatiently on the keyboard.

A second passed before she gave up. Grabbing the microphone conveniently placed next to her on the table, she pressed the miniscule red button and spoke into the phone. "Hey Lelouch, when are you coming back?" And she rolled her eyes at his answer, then raised an eyebrow as she said, "We still have to go over the plan, do we not?" A pause. "Well, then hurry up." And she hung up without waiting for a reply.

Later that day…

Lelouch heaved a small sigh as he eyed the papers in front of him, which were clipped into a plain folder. He then stood up and started pacing; his movements were being monitored by two watchful pairs of eyes. After a minute, he halted and stretched out his hand, the one holding the folder, and another stronger, more muscular hand reached up to grab it.

Suzaku stood up from the sofa, his scrutinizing gaze now transferred to the papers that he'd received from Lelouch. "Is that it, then?" he asked, to which his friend nodded.

"The final plan," said C.C. idly on the couch. Both guys turned to her and the corners of their lips curled down slightly in unison into a grimace, and a tiny, bitter smile graced her pale face. A grim understanding slowly and silently blossomed between the trio.

"If you need anything, you know where to find me," Suzaku said as he moved the folder from one hand to another. After receiving some acknowledging nods, he turned on his heels without uttering another word and strode out of the headquarters, leaving the couple behind.

The doors soundlessly slid shut behind him.

Lelouch sat down on the couch, on which the green-haired witch was half-lying, half-sitting. She watched him as he leaned slightly forward to grab a teacup off the coffee table and brought it to his lips, sipping the green liquid thoughtfully. She then glanced at her own, untouched, and studied the slowly evaporating steams without interest.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him lean forward yet again. This time, however, he was pulling some papers off another folder, equally plain and boring. Then, silence engulfed them as Lelouch read over the report and she simply stared at the still liquid in her beautiful china teacup.

When C.C. gazed up at the clock on the wall, she thought at least fifteen minutes must have passed, while in reality only a minute did. She let out a tired sigh.

And earned no response from him. He must have been quite engaged in the writing, mustn't he?

C.C. then scooted closer, her elbow brushing against his, and this time his bright violet orbs moved slightly to the right to look at her. "What is it?" he asked absently.

"Did you enjoy the kiss?"

To say Lelouch merely sputtered and stuttered and blushed was a great understatement.

"Wha-What are you-"

She waved a hand at him. "Don't play dumb, Lelouch," she said, raising a delicate green eyebrow. "You know there's a mini microphone attached to your shirt collar." To prove her point, she reached up, earning a small and subtle gasp from him in the process, and flipped his collar to one side to reveal the said phone. "I could hear everything you said. Wasn't that the plan?" She withdrew. "Suzaku and I could hear everything that happened."

Then, a taunting smirk touched the corner of her lips as she slightly and flirtingly lowered her heavy eyelashes. "Poor Suzaku, I can only imagine his awkwardness…" drawled C.C.

Lelouch let out a dignified huff. "Why does it matter, witch?" He pressed. "You never cared for such thing."

"Hmmm…" C.C. let his comment sink in. Her bright golden orbs found a captivating spot in the high ceiling above, and one of her slender fingers started twirling a long lime lock around it as she mulled it over. "I wonder…"

**000**

He was sitting on the window's sill, still in his Knight's outfit, with one long leg propped up and one hand stretched out to rest on his knee when she walked in. A small picture was clutched gently in his slightly curled fingers.

"Do you have any regrets?" queried C.C. as she ambled over, and soon stood by his side and joined him in his activity of gazing out the window.

She noticed how his normally bright emerald green orbs had now turned a shade darker and a haze seemed to settle over them. However, when he spoke, his voice was clear and there was no trace of doubt or hesitation. "No, I don't. It's too late to turn back now, anyways."

He was determined, she had to give him credit for that. Quite determined, actually. After what happened to his father, to Euphie, and now he was willing to throw his own life away. Was that an action of atonement? She supposed both he and Lelouch had a lot to amend for. But who was she to judge?

A wry chuckle escaped her lips involuntarily, and he titled his head to the side to look at her. The glassiness was still there but not as apparent as it was before. "What's so funny?" he asked.

She gave a shrug. "Nothing." She then took a glimpse of the photograph in his hand. Due to its being held in sweat and exposed to sunlight and air over time, the picture itself had become quite worn out. A sudden weariness passed over her. "How many times have you looked at that?" She gestured at the picture in his hand. He looked down, and a small, sad smile stretched out on his tanned face.

"Who knows?" he said. "I don't keep count anymore."

"You must have loved her dearly."

Suzaku stared at the picture of a happily smiling Euphie. Her long, long pink hair was flowing softly in the wind. He remembered when he'd taken this particular photograph. When he had already become her knight, and when she decided to give him a day off so that they could go to this cherry blossom festival together, as normal citizens. Of course that didn't last long because sooner or later, someone tended to recognize Euphie's unique hair color. But they had fun. And that was the last time they had spent together, not as a princess and a knight on duty, but as two people in love.

Now, all of those happy memories were no longer what kept his smile in place. They were what haunted him at night. They were the culprits for his severe lack of sleep. But no one knew about it, except for Lelouch and C.C.

"I'm envious." The witch's cool voice drew him from his reverie, and he snapped back to her face, realizing that she had been studying him all this time under that same indifferent and emotionless gaze of hers.

"Of what?" said Suzaku simply as he stood up, stuffed the picture securely in his pocket and walked away from the window, away from her. He didn't seem to want her to dig into his feelings more than she already had, and since she could care less either way she didn't seem to be bothered.

C.C. watched him trail over to the large couch next to the working desk and sit down in it. He then reached over to get the folder that was earlier delivered by Lelouch, and started studying it.

She followed his path with hands clasped behind her. When she was standing directly behind him, she spread out her slender arms and wrapped them gingerly around his strong shoulders, resting her chin on his soft, brown locks. He didn't even once flinch or tense under her touch, like _he _had.

"I've never met a man so devoted to his lover like you," she was saying. "Euphie was a lucky girl."

"She's the only one who ever understood me."

"Not even Lelouch?"

A pause.

Whatever Suzaku intended to say was cut off abruptly for the doors to his room slid open unexpectedly and in came none other than Lelouch. When his eyes befell the scene in front of him, they slightly widened.

**000**

"That was not nice, Lelouch," said C.C., a bit annoyed. She halted in her tracks. "_Now_ let go of my wrist, boy." Her voice was quite menacing that it temporarily distracted his thought process long enough for him to glance down to find his hand clasped tightly over her small wrist.

His eyes widened with mouth ever slightly agape. What _was_ he doing?

She yanked her hand back rather forcefully, and that was when the realization of his action fully hit him on the head. He staggered back with trembling hands and lips. His eyes never went back to their normal sizes.

"What's the matter with you, Lelouch?" inquired C.C. with a highly raised eyebrow and arms crossed over her breasts. "You just barged in, grabbed and dragged me all the way back here-" she nodded at the headquarters's main space as if to solidify her obvious point, "without any warning. Don't you think you owe Suzaku an explanation? Or me for that matter?" Even though C.C.'s tone remained as monotonously as it was on any normal day, there was something else in her voice that startled him. Confusion, maybe? Or just plain irritation? Or perhaps impatience?

He couldn't place his finger on it and this new feeling was driving him up the wall.

"That's…" was all he could manage to get out. Shaking his head, he murmured, "Forget it." Then he turned around and stalked away, once again failed to deliver a reason behind his questioning action.

C.C. could only watch his retreating back with an uncharacteristically creasing forehead.

The doors to his bedroom slid open and stood at the threshold was the green-haired witch. Her expression was unreadable under the dim lights illuminating the room as she studied the figure in front of her.

Lelouch was sitting gloomily on the edge of the bed, his back slightly hunched with hands clasped together between his knees. Even his normally stoic expression couldn't conceal the melancholy he must have been experiencing.

"Isn't this enough, Lelouch?" said C.C. softly while walking towards him. She then proceeded to sit down on the bed with her back to him. A second later, she drew up one leg, wrapped her arm around it, and leaned against him. He made neither movement nor comment.

"Nunnally's happy," C.C. continued when she heard no response from him. "She's in good hands. Is it not too late to turn back now, Lelouch? After all, everything you've done, you've done for her."

"It's too late, C.C.," he spoke at last. His voice was barely audible. "All of the people who have lost their lives… I can't stop now, can I?"

She had anticipated the answer, however, that didn't mean she was ready to accept it, or content to accept it for that matter. But she knew there was absolutely no turning back. The graves they had dug for themselves had gotten deeper and they couldn't just simply climb back up without expecting some dire consequences.

Her rosy lips curled into a slightly bitter smirk as she leaned farther against him. "Ahh, that's right… You can't. We can only move forward now." Without warning, she tenderly placed her hand above his. Once again, he made neither movement nor comment, and she supposed that maybe he was too depressed and/or tried to shut down all the functions in his brain that dealt with emotions that he could no longer feel anything. After all, for a teenager, he had indeed been through a lot.

"We are accomplices, Lelouch," C.C. said firmly. "I'll remain by your side till the end."

"Accomplices?" A wry chuckle was heard from behind her, and it startled her for a split second because it was the first personally reaction she'd witnessed from him since they started having this dreary conversation.

Her silence must have prompted him to continue because he said, "After a year, are we still at square one?"

Her golden orbs travelled to the farthest left side of her eyes. "What are you implying?"

"We've been through a lot together, haven't we, C.C.?" He was wringing his hands. "And I've been doing some thinking. Maybe I'm not destined to find true love."

She chuckled lightly. "Are we really talking about love right now? When the Zero Requiem is underway?"

"I've never known what love really is," he carried on as if he hadn't heard her at all. "I used to think that it was a meaningless feeling. It's just something with which I can manipulate to get people to do things for me…" He trailed off, swallowed and went on. "I never cared about their feelings."

"Their?"

"Kallen." A pause. "Rolo. Even though I'm not his blood brother, he'd sacrificed his life for me. He was willing to die for someone who had lied and used him." His voice was becoming strained as he continued. "And then… Shirley..." A longer pause this time.

C.C. had already closed her eyes and her hand that was laid atop his subconsciously tightened.

"Till the moment that she died, she still wanted to be the only true thing to me. She… She loved me even though I'd manipulated her memories, her feelings… She never hated me. In fact, she…" He trailed off once more, and it didn't seem like he could keep going because a minute passed by without him elaborating.

With their backs together, C.C. could feel his whole frame silently and slightly trembling against hers. She didn't know if he was crying or merely shaking, but she didn't want to turn around. She didn't want to see his tears. She didn't want to see what she was afraid to see most. She didn't want to see him break down. And most importantly, she-

Suddenly, he straightened his back, and when he spoke again, it felt as though the boy she'd just had a conversation with had disappeared and been replaced by a firm, ruthless and determined leader who would never allow anything to get in his way.

"But there's no turning back now," he was saying. His hand under hers balled into a fist. "I have to do this, for the sake of all those who have lost their lives. Right, C.C.?"

She squeezed his hand in return. "Ahh, that's right."

Lelouch stood up, and she leaned away, her back was still to him and her eyes obscured by her long bangs. "I should be going," he announced in that authoritative, void of emotions, voice of his. "Suzaku's probably waiting at the maintenance room. You can come later; we're just going to go over the plan again."

Without waiting for an answer, he started to walk away, and she called out. "Say, Lelouch…" He stopped in his tracks. "You know my true wish, right?" she spoke softly, still not facing him, but she was already in the process of turning around when she popped this next question. "Do you think you could've granted me that wish in this lifetime?" Now, she was looking at him with a rarely bright smile and eyes filled with glistening liquid.

A knowing smirk crossed his face as he answered, "If you could wait for me that long, then I, Lelouch vi Britannia, will be glad to fulfill your most sacred wish."

She let out a chuckle while getting off the bed and standing up. "Silly, you won't be a Lelouch vi Britannia anymore." She stepped close to him and stopped. Her bright, luminous golden orbs met his beautiful and brilliant violet ones passionately. "You will be someone else, a different person." Her slender arms snaked their ways up his neck and wound themselves around it as her body pressed close to his. Their smile and gaze hadn't wavered once. "But I'll always recognize you, no matter what." He gingerly put his hands on her tiny hips and titled his head down, brushing his lips against hers, coaxing her smile to widen. He loved it when she smiled. "So I'll be waiting." The deal was sealed with a kiss.

_No matter who you are,_

_No matter what disguise you're under,_

_I'll know it's you,_

_So I'll be happy to wait,_

_No matter how long it takes,_

_Just promise me, love,_

_That you'll find your way back to me._

**000**

Suzaku was staring impatiently at his watch while tapping his foot anxiously on the concrete floor.

"Damnit, where _are_ they?" he murmured while fishing out his cell from his pocket, and as he was about to speed-dial Lelouch's number, Arthur jumped down from apparently out of nowhere, landed on his arm, earning a bewildered gasp from him, and in the process knocking the phone down into the drain.

"Arthur!"

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the delayed update! I had to rewrite this particularly stubborn chapter many times because it's so stubborn that it wouldn't agree with me on the first few drafts.. But finally, finally haha I nailed it down! So this is it, the last chapter, the finale. Apparently, I'm going with the theory "Lelouch is dead for world peace." Personally, I think that that ending is what makes Code Geass quite memorable and still one of my favorites, so he died in this story... But don't worry! You must factor in the reincarnation! And by now, I believe you've already guessed the 'price' that they had to pay huh? Evil of me, right? Hehe it's okay, they're going to meet again, some day in the far, far future, but they'll be reunited once more :))

Well, I hope you guys enjoyed the little ride. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing! Lots of love!


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